Monday, September 26, 2011

A Chair Affair

The eldest Miss Hat has studied dance for several years with an angel appropriately named Ms. Delight. Ms. Delight teaches dance to individuals largely overlooked when it comes to recreation and the arts: kids and adults with special needs.

Over the years, I've seen wheelchair-bound students dance their chairs across the stage with rhythmic grace. I've seen dancers with Down Syndrome choreograph their own routines and bring down the house with thunderous applause. There have been kids trapped by the inabilities of their physical bodies who have shown the audience the radient spirit within. Most special to me personally has been seeing autistic girls work together in teamwork, forge friendships, and bravely dance solo on stage.

These kids and adults get to experience what "normal" kids and adults get to do: express themselves artistically, have fun on stage, hear an audience laud their ability. The benefits go well beyond dance and art to building confidence, strengthening social skills and improving physical coordination.

Oh, and if that isn't enough, Delight won't turn away students because they can't afford lessons. Nope. She works hard to raise money to help underwrite their lessons, costuming and performance space.

This fall, Delight's studio is having a fundraiser called "A Chair Affair" in which several local artists, her students and other supporters have donated and/or transformed random chairs into works of art. The chairs will be displayed in various venues throughout the fall and auctioned off on November 5.

Enter my project.

I've long admired this unique double-seater in the studio and was so excited when it was offered up as fodder for A Chair Affair:

I snapped that baby up and transformed it to look like this:

Look at its amazing lines:

Clearly Cat Hat likes it, too.

And the best part of this is that IT FOLDS. That's right - fold it up, store it, and pull it out when you need some extra seating. I will never, ever come across something this awesome again.

I'm going to have SUCH a hard time letting this go. I'll be bidding, to be sure, and as much as I want to keep this, I want the studio to make more on it than I can afford to bid, so I'll probably have to acclimate myself to living without it. *heavy sigh*

If you are in the area and interested in stopping by for the event or want more information about the studio, let me know. Come buy my chair so I can at least come visit it at your house. Please?

Wow, I really love this. I was excited when I saw the before pic - but the after is amazing. I love, love, love using maps in decor and the map and words you used go together so perfectly. Plus, the rest of your post was very sweet and thought-provoking. Thanks for sharing this.

Welcome

I'm still trying to feel out what this blog wants to be when it grows up. So, pardon the dust and disorganization (hey - a lot like my house!) while I'm getting enough stuff out here to merit the room I'm taking up in cyberspace.